


Somehow We Found It Here (We Found Us A Home)

by americanhoney913



Series: We Ride Together [7]
Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: 4HW - Freeform, F/F, Four Horsewomen, Lifetime, Multi, OT4, Reid Lynch
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-12-05
Packaged: 2020-10-04 13:24:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 11,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20471744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/americanhoney913/pseuds/americanhoney913
Summary: We are, we areNot your ordinary fami-milyBut we can all agree thatWe are, we areClose as close can beSo it don't matter what it looks likeWe look perfect to meWe got every kind of loveI feel so lucky indeedThey can keep on talkingIt don't matter to me causeWe are, we are family--- We Are (Family), Keke Palmer***Flashes of the Four Horsewomen's daughter, Reid Lynch's life, one chapter at a time.





	1. Bayley Shark Doo Doo Doo

**Author's Note:**

> In the notes, you'll find a stanza from the song We Are One from Lion King 2, on which this entire fic is based. Each section also has a year and Reid's age.
> 
> ***
> 
> Things to know about the future of WWE in this fic:
> 
> Becky takes over for Hunter as the head of NXT
> 
> Seth runs RAW
> 
> Paige runs SmackDown
> 
> Sasha and Bayley run a new women's only brand called Amazons
> 
> Charlotte runs a gym called Wild Horse Fitness in Orlando, Florida where they live

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _As you go through life you'll see_   
_There is so much that we_   
_Don't understand_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2023  
Reid is 3

Sasha positions her camera so she can capture this moment. The whole world is awash with blue, shadows crossing over them every so often. Reid’s chubby hands make grabbing motions and she giggles.

The blue-haired woman looks ahead and finds Charlotte pressing her nose against the glass, Becky standing next to her with a hand on the blonde’s hip. They’re in Monterey, California, for a show and, with the day off, they’ve decided to go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. This is the first tour Charlotte’s done since Reid was born and rediscovering the world through their daughter’s eyes makes the long days, the hard nights, bruises and scrapes worth it.

“Ma, sark!” Reid shouted as a shark swims over the tunnel they’re slowly meandering through.

Bayley kneels down next to the stroller and Reid giggles again. “That’s right, Little Dove,” she responds. “It’s a shark.”

“Bruce,” Reid points to another shark as it slinks across the glass. “Bruce!”

Sasha chuckles and moves the stroller closer to the enclosure. Reid slips out of her chair and squishes her face to the glass, much like Becky’s doing further down at the octopus tank. They’ve watched Finding Nemo many times and Reid’s favorite character is Bruce the shark.

“It’s not Bruce, baby,” Sasha says. She checks the fact sheet next to the tank and points to the different pictures. Reid waddles over to her, leaning her chin on Sasha's arm. “The first shark was called a nurse shark and that one,” she points to the second shark, “is a tiger shark.”

“Wow.” Reid awe makes Sasha beam with pride. The toddler’s curiosity makes her heart swell and she glances up to share a look with Bayley. The lights shining down through the water make the brunette look washed in blue light, turning her into a kind of ethereal mermaid with her purple t-shirt and long legs.

Reid waddles away and Sasha allows herself to be pulled along. Bayley follows with the stroller. Becky and Charlotte meet up with them at the end of the walkway. Sasha lets go of Reid as she presses her face to the glass again as a stingray swims right next to the glass so you can see its face.

“Mr. Ray!” she squeals as she tugs on the edge of Charlotte’s yellow sundress. The blonde leans down and Reid presses their cheeks together and giggles. After the stingray passes, Sasha watching as the shadow passes over them, Charlotte hoists Reid into the air and onto her boulder shoulders.

As they continue through the maze that is the aquarium, Reid wants to know everything. She asks all the questions, babbling random untrue facts but ones she believes with all her heart. She copies the penguins’ walk and makes the seagull noises--but it’s more of the seagulls from  _ Finding Nemo  _ noises-- and she dances through the hall of glowing jellyfish.

“We should probably get back to the hotel,” Charlotte says as she hugs Reid to her chest. The girl’s arms are wrapped around her shoulders and she yawns, wipes at her eyes. Becky, standing behind Charlotte, copies her with a much more exaggerated yawn, like a tiger’s, and Reid responds with a sleepy giggle.

Becky nods. “Yeah, I have to check in with Toni and Rhea. Seth wants me to look over the choreo with them one last time.”

“Oh yeah, their match is tomorrow, right? The one for the SmackDown title?”

Becky nods. "They've really made their marks with this feud." She poked Charlotte's arm. "They're calling it the best one since ours."

The blonde rolls her eyes and shifts Reid from her right hip to her left. “Come on,” she says, ignoring Becky’s comment, “we should hit the gift shop before we go back.”

“Sark?” Reid asks as she rubs her eye with her tiny fist.

“Yeah, we can get you a shark.” Sasha takes Reid from Charlotte and puts her back in the stroller.


	2. Ride That Pony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _And the only thing we know_   
_Is things don't always go_   
_The way we planned_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2033  
Reid is 13

Reid presses her body closer to the hard muscular one under her. She takes a deep breath and arches her back, her hands knotting into coarse black hair, and then she’s flying through the air. She jolts as she comes back down and she sits up, allowing the movement of the body beneath her to roll her own like they’re a single unit.

Rounding the corner, she knocks her heels gently into her horse’s side and the two of them almost merge together as the final hurdle comes up. “Come on, Nevermore,” she whispers as she leans into his neck. One of his ears turns back to listen to her voice while the other perks up and faces forward. “We can do this!” She can feel his hair, damp with sweat and ruffled from the reigns. “We’ve got this.” 

She hasn’t been paying attention at all to what they’ve done. Everything is about this final hurdle. She’s aiming for second place or higher and she won’t accept anything less. Her moms might not care, but her moms are also winners, many times oved. She wants to show them she can be a winner too. Reid allows herself to relax, release the tension on the reins, and allows Nevermore to fly over the final hurdle. She gets control as he trots and chomps at the bit. She falls back into the saddle and leads him out of the showjumping ring. She nods to the judges as she passes them and she knows she nailed the final jump. Reid guides him over to where her moms are cheering so loudly she blushes in embarrassment.

She can kick ass at anything she puts her mind to and this is no different.

* * *

Sasha finds Reid wiping down Nevermore's saddle in the tack corner of the barn behind their farmhouse. Nevermore’s peeking his head into the room from his stall. He lips at her shirt as she passes and she chuckles, pressing a kiss to the star of his muzzle, and moves to sit on one of the tack benches.

"Little Dove, you okay?" she asks with caution. She learns forward and puts her elbows on her thighs.

Reid turns away, ignores her. She’s scrubbing the soft leather vigorously, her mouth turned down in a frown. She’s still dressed in her riding outfit, but her muckboots sit in one corner under her hat, one of them falling over into the other one, Reid’s feet now in her typical blue and red Converse sneakers.

“Reid, talk to me.”

Her daughter spins around, holding the cloth and pointing a finger at her mother. “I lost. What more do you want me to say, ma? We lost and it’s all my fault.” She turns around before Sasha can respond. “I disappointed you and mama, and mami, and da.”

“You could never disappoint us, honey.” Sasha moves closer to Reid, holding out her arms. Reid is like Sasha herself; when she’s upset, she’s not really in the mood for people to touch her, unless she comes to you. Reid sighs and shakes her head.

“But you’re all champions. You and mami are still winning belts and you guys all broke records and da was the first woman to hold both belts at once. And I’m just a _ participant _.” She glares at the red ribbon hanging off of Nevermore’s bridle, where a kindly looking old woman hung it after the winners were announced.

“Sure, all of us are lucky now,” Sasha shrugs, “but we weren’t always.”

Reid sighs. She throws the rag onto the saddle bench and walks into Sasha’s arms. She buries her face in Sasha’s neck and sniffles. “I was just so confident I was gonna win. And then I didn’t.”

Sasha lets her go when she pulls away. “I didn’t think I would lose the tag title at WrestleMania after just getting it. Bayley and I didn’t know what was gonna happen until that day.” Sasha watches as Reid fills up Nevermore’s feed and slips a few pieces of apple in there for him to find. “But I came back, stronger than ever, and with your Mami's help, we transformed the women's division again. We won back the titles and kept them for a long time after that.”

“Mami said you almost stopped wrestling all together.”

Sasha walks over and stands with her arms on the stall door as Reid stands beside Nevermore while he eats, staring at her horse and stroking his neck wistfully. 

“I almost did. I was tired of losing belts the match after I got them. I was jealous of Charlotte and Becky, of even Bayley because of her optimism we would win it back eventually and-”

“She was right about that, though,” Reid interrupts as she sits down on a hay bale in the stall. “You did win it back. And you kept it for a long time.”

Sasha shakes her head and moves into the stall, trying to avoid the patches of horseshit. “But I didn’t know that _then._ I thought that the pattern would continue. I’d win them and lose ‘em right after.”

“What does that have to do with me?” Reid asks.

“Well, our plans don’t always work out, but we have to keep going. This might not have been your win, but you’ll show them next time.”

Nevermore whickers and shakes out his mane. He walks over and presses against Reid’s chest as if he can understand what they’re talking about. He nibbles at her flannel shirt and she chuckles and cups his muzzle. “Thanks, buddy.” He neighs and snorts. “Ugh, gross.”

“Come on, we should go back to the house before the others get worried.” Sasha stands up and wipes the back of her pants with her hands. “Well, even more worried.”

“So they sent you?” Reid sounds shocked.

“Hey, if you’re gonna be like that, I’m gonna go inside and eat all of mami’s cake by myself.” Sasha tugs on Reid’s ponytail.

Reid’s smile turns down into a frown and she shakes her head. “I think, um, I kinda wanna stay here tonight?” She looks at the floor as Nevermore does one circle of his stall with them in the middle and then settles in one corner. He folds his legs beneath him and huffs as he nips at his flank, flicks his tail. 

“You sure?” Sasha asks. “It’s gonna be hot out here. There’s air conditioning inside… and no bugs.” She shudders.

“No, I think I need to be out here with Nevermore.” She nods. “I’ve got a blanket and he’s warm.”

“Okay.” Sasha nods. She leaves Reid in the stall and grabs the blanket. “Here.” She sits down and rests her back against Nevermore, his breathing making her lift up and down a little bit. 

“You’re gonna join me?” Reid asks incredulously. “After you just complained about the bugs and the lack of air conditioning.”

“I’m not leaving you out here by yourself.” When Reid opens her mouth, Sasha chuckles. “Besides Nevermore.”

Reid walks over and crawls into Sasha’s arms, snuggled up against her chin. Nevermore whinnies before he bends his head so his nose lands under Reid’s hand. She giggles and scratches his soft nose.

“We’re going to get through this, Little Dove,” Sasha whispers in the darkness of the stall as the automatic lights in the stable turns off. “Together.”

“Together,” Reid agrees as she nods off.


	3. Beat Up Six Ways to Sunday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _But you'll see every day_   
_That we'll never turn away_   
_When it seems all your dreams come undone_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2037  
Reid is sixteen

Reid snarls as she rushes at Cherry Bomb, a pale brunette with bright red ring gear, and grunts when she’s met with an elbow to the chest. She falls back and Shelby Max slugs her in the jaw.

“Fuck!” she screams at the pain and she collapses, rolls out of the ring. Her whole body feels like one big bruise.

“Ooooooooh!” the announcer shouts. “And Legacy is the first one out of the ring. This six-way women’s match is down to five.” He clicks his tongue. “Better luck next time, Legacy.”

Reid hugs her arm close to her chest, presses it against her aching ribs. She stumbles to her feet and feels an arm settle over her shoulder, helping her to her feet.

“Steady, Trouble,” Reid hears her da’s voice in her ear. “I gottcha.”

Becky helps Reid to her feet and maybe the look in her da’s eyes hurts more than being the first one out. She hangs her head and allows the older woman to lead her back to the locker room. They’re in a shitty town in the Midwest that she can’t remember the name of for a six-way match. Reid hasn’t been on the independent circuit for long-- only about a year-- and Becky told her this was going to be a tough challenge, so she should wait a while longer. But Reid knows she has a stubborn streak a mile wide, inherited from all four of her parents, so she’d entered herself first and then told Becky.

“Da, I’m gonna be so bruised tomorrow,” Reid whines as she changes into her street clothes. She’s unusually clumsy because of her injuries, so she’s struggling to get her shirt on. Becky leans against the row of lockers and chuckles. “What are we gonna tell moms?”

“Uh, you got beat up in school?” Becky wrinkles her nose. Reid shakes her head. “Okay, maybe you’re just _really _clumsy.”

“Daaaaaa.” Reid shoves her arm through her shirtsleeve a little more violently than she should have. Becky chuckles and comes over to help her when she gets stuck.

“We’ve still got tonight and the drive back to Florida,” Becky reminds her as she pulls the shirt down until Reid’s head pops through it. “And I’ve got salve you can put on it. Should help the pain.”

“Thanks.” Reid puts a Winter Park High School shirt over her head, a big wildcat paw print on her chest. They head out together, Becky carrying Reid’s ring gear bag. Becky smiles at her daughter, bundled up in her oversized black sweatshirt with her hands shoved into the pockets.

"What?" Reid asks suspiciously, seeing her da's look.

"Nothin'." Becky shakes her head, smile still in place. "Charlie and I just made the cutest kid."

"Daaaaaaaa!" Reid cries in embarrassment as she buries herself further into her sweatshirt. 

* * *

“I’m sorry,” Reid says when they get to their hotel room and she sits down. The single hotel bed creaks with the lifted weight. A cheap bed in a cheap, dingy hotel: the walls bubbling and spotted with mildew near the ceiling. Becky doesn’t like to spend lots of money when they travel and it’s always cash only. Doesn’t want the wives to get suspicious. 

“Why’re ya sorry?” Becky asks as she moves around the room,etting s their things on the shitty paisley chair that looks like it's seen better days. She grabs their toiletries and goes into the bathroom. The dingy light bathes the room in a sickly yellow glow as the redhead shuffles into the bathroom.

“Because we’ve been training for this match forever… and I fucked up,” Reid says, a little louder to be heard over the running water in the sink. “First one out.” She pulls her hands away and glares at the dashboard. “Some legacy I am.”

Becky comes to the doorway of the bathroom, toothbrush in her mouth and toothpaste dripping down her chin. She looks like a rabid dog, frothing at the mouth. “Tha’s a supid ting ta tink.” Her voice sounds funny around the toothbrush.

Reid blinks owlishly at her. “What?”

“Trouble, ya’ve ony been at tis fer a yer,” Becky says around the toothbrush. “We been doin' tis for decades.” She holds up her finger in a one-minute gesture and leans down to spit in the sink. She wipes her mouth with her hand as she comes to sit next to her daughter. 

Reid loves the time she gets to spend with her da. Out of all her moms, Becky’s the one who’s never treated her like a kid. Not fully like an adult, but better than her other moms, who baby her a little too much. It might have been fun before, but now she's a big girl, able to hold her own fights… Except this one. 

Becky wrinkles her nose and Reid chuckles. “God, that makes us sound so old.”

“The only reason I already know I’ve got a spot in NXT is because of you guys.” Reid shrugs. “I wanted to win this on _my own merit_. Couldn’t even get one person out.” She pushes the covers down with her feet and winkles her nose at the musty scent that comes from the pillow. “I’m a disappointment. Maybe I should just quit now. So I don’t embarrass myself. Or you guys.” She puts her head on her knees and wraps her arms around them.

The shitty bed creaks and then Reid feels hands on her knees. She looks up to see Becky smiling down at her, hair pulled back into a ponytail and brown eyes fiery. “Reid, don’t ya dare talk about my favorite child like that!”

“I’m your only child.”

Becky waves her hand in a dismissive gesture. “Look, Trouble, when Finn started training me, he said I was the wors’ he’s ever seen.” Reid unfolds and rests her legs in Becky’s lap. Becky chuckles, shoves her legs away, and then wiggles up the bed so she can lay on her back. She crosses her arms behind her head. Reid leans back against the headboard.

“But I’ve seen your matches. They’re amazing.”

“Because I practiced,” Becky responds, flicking Reid’s leg. “Really ‘ard. And yer moms challenged me. I didn’ wrestle for six years because I got hurt. But I came back and yer moms kicked my ass until I could stand there and give just as good as I got.”

“But you guys changed the game!” Reid throws her hands up. “Da, you guys broke glass ceilings and destroyed stereotypes and kicked ass. How can I compete with that?”

“You can’t,” Becky says and Reid’s eyes go wide and glassy. “And we're not expectin' ya to. Yer mama knows exactly what it’s like to live in a legend’s shadow. We don’t want that fer ya. Sure, you’ll always be attached to us, but ya have the chance to go further than we ever did.”

“How?” Reid pushes herself down until she’s laying next to her da. “How can I when Ma and Mami are still in the game? How can I compete with legends?”

“Reid, hon, yer goin' 'round in circles.” Becky leans over and presses a kiss to Reid’s forehead. The brunette sighs and closes her eyes, snuggling into her da’s chest. She remembers when she was a small child, cuddling up to her moms. It was nice to hear their heartbeats, especially when she was worked up or upset. Most people had only two parents, but she was lucky. She has four parents, four heartbeats, four pairs of arms to wrap around her, four places to find comfort in any storm.

“I just want to make you proud.”

Becky chuckles and shakes her head. “We’ll be proud of ya, Trouble, whatever ya decide.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment and let me know what you thought!
> 
> I know we're jumping around in time a lot, but I wanted to get Reid at different ages!


	4. So Proud of My Baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _We will stand by your side_   
_Filled with hope and filled with pride_   
_We are more than we are_   
_We are one_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2040  
Reid is 19
> 
> In honor of Charlynch's win on RAW tonight!

Becky waves one of Reid’s most popular NXT Champ shirts over her head and whoops as she and Charlotte head backstage. The blonde laughs, a huge smile on her face. Their daughter’s held the belt for longer than any of her mother’s had held it. And tonight she defended it against the previous champ and her best friend, Cassie aka Shooting Starr. Charlotte remembers her reign, the longest of the Four Horsewomen at 258 days, but now Reid’s surpassed that. She’s so fucking proud of her daugther.

“Hey, guys!”

The two women turn around to find Lacey Evans standing with a mic and a cameraman. She’s wearing a beautiful 50s pinup outfit with a red corset top and with a black and white polka dot skirt.

“What’s up, homewrecker?” Becky responds. Lacey huffs, but shakes out her hair and holds the mic up to the two of them. Charlotte knows that her firecracker wife and Lacey will never get along after the other blonde agreed to a feud that didn’t help either of them. She also knows that Becky tolerates Lacey more than she did in before, but that wasn’t saying much. Of the four of them, Bayley's the only one that's on genuinely friendly terms with the blonde.

“Can we help you, Lacey?” Charlotte asks as she puts a hand on Becky’s shoulder, feeling the tension, like a coiled spring. 

“I just wanted to say congratulations,” Lacey tells them. “Reid has officially broken Charlotte’s record for the NXT belt. Eight months. You must be really proud.”

Becky nods her head while Charlotte goes off on a tangent. “We might have started the revolution, but we know Reid’s going to kick ass and break more glass ceiling than we ever did.”

“I know Sasha and Bayley are working with Hunter on some new project for the women’s division,” Lacey starts. “Can you tell us a little bit about what it’s going to mean for the WWE women?”

Becky shakes her head. “No can do, homewrecker.” She crosses her arms. “Ye’ll find out when everyone else does. But we’re not here to talk ‘bout rumors. We’re ‘ere to talk about Reid.”

“Right.” Lacey nods, even though her face twists into a scowl. Charlotte puts a bit of pressure on Becky’s bicep when she feels her wife move to step forward. “So, what do you think Reid’s going to do when she gets called up to the main roster? She’s going to have quite the challenge when she debuts.”

Becky shakes her head. “She may be our legacy, but she’s gonna make her own by herself. No piggybacking.” Charlotte gives her a side-eye, but Becky chuckles and ignores her as she continues. “I mean, ya have seen her signature move? A moonsault twist offa t’ top turnbuckle. Crazy girl. So fucking brave too.”

“Well, she’s got some crazy parents.” Charlotte laughs. “But we’re so proud of her and we can’t wait to see what she does next.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, please review!


	5. Wrestling with Poppop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _If there's so much I must be_   
_Can't I still just be me_   
_The way I am?_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2028  
Reid is 7

Reid loves staying at her Poppop’s house. It smells spicy and like the flowers Mama always brings home when they go to the farmer's market on Fridays. Right now, her parents are out on Important Official Wrestling Business with Grandpa Hunter, so Reid’s staying with Poppop.

His house in Charlotte, NC is beautiful. It has a fun pool and a movie theater where they watch movies and she’s allowed to sing along to _ all _ the songs. Poppop had sworn her to secrecy, but he allowed her to watch all the Marvel movies she wants, even the ones with the Old Avengers. She loves her bedroom, with her stuffed animals and the pictures of space and the starmap that acts like a nightlight when she’s scared of the dark. 

Poppop lets her eat sugary cereal for breakfast and whatever she wants for lunch and they get dinner at the All-Stars diner down the street when Crissy’s working because Poppop says she has a cute butt. Reid thinks she looks like that old librarian from school, but she's not gonna say anything. She just likes Crissy because she always gives Reid an extra scoop on her sundae.

Her favorite room in his house, besides the movie room, is where he keeps all the posters and belts and robes. The Memory Room, he calls it. Her mama’s red robe shines whenever the sun hits the sparkles just right. There’s belts hanging up on the wall; replicas, Poppop said, because they had to give the real one to the person who won. There’s disks with her moms’ names and Poppop’s name. She remembers throwing them like Hercules when she was younger. There’s still one of Ma’s plate’s sticking out of the wall where she threw it. Reid remembers Mama wanting to take it out, but Poppop said to leave it. Said it gave the room character, whatever that means. 

She’s got one of the belts on, the red one this time. She has to hold it up because it’s heavy. Her moms must be really strong to wear these all or carry them all the time.

“Hey, there’s my little Rainbow." Poppop’s voice comes from the doorway. Reid turns around and beams at him. She waddles over to him because these belts really are heavy. “What’cha doin’, kid?” 

“I’m da Man!” Reid shouts as she takes off the belt and tries to lift it over her head. “Oof.” She falls back onto her butt and laughs. Poppop chuckles and comes to sit down in the only chair in the room. She remembers sitting on his lap, listening to him tell the stories from when he wasn’t so old and wrinkled. Well, less wrinkled than now.

“Careful, Rainbow, those are heavy.”

“Yeah,” Reid nods, “I can feel that.” She readjusts the belt, trying to put it on her shoulder but it just falls off because her shoulders are too narrow. Mami says she'll get Boulder Shoulders like Mama one day. She plops down on the floor in front of his chair and traces the W with a gentle finger. “Poppop, do you think I’d be a good wrestler?”

“Rainbow, you’d be the best at anything you put your mind to.” He puts his hand on her head and smiles. “Do you _ want _ to be a wrestler?”

Reid shrugs. “I don’t want to let my moms down.”

“But what do _ you _ want?”

“I want…” Reid’s nose crinkles. She traces the letter again and again. She looks up at her Poppop, his kind blue eyes and his smile and his wrinkled face with his saggy skin. She always wants to make her family proud, her Poppop proud. And…

Her stomach growls. Poppop bursts into loud, barking laughter. 

“I want food.”

“Whatever you want, my little Rainbow. Whatever you want.” 

* * *

The All-Star Diner smells like grease and cheap leather from the chairs. The walls are covered in old posters back from when Poppop was little, newspapers and comic books and old movie posters. Reid bounces along until they sit in their usual booth, right next to the big picture of Superman.

They both get hamburgers, fries, and a huge sundae for dessert, with an extra scoop of strawberry from Crissy with the nice butt. 

Poppop takes one of the papers on the table and some crayons out of the little cup Reid gets with her kid’s menu. He begins to draw stick figures. She wrinkles her nose when he gives them hair like her moms. 

“Poppop,” she giggles, “what are you doing?”

“I’m telling you a story of the greatest wrestler of all time.” He throws his arms up in a dramatic gesture.

Poppop draws horrible pictures, but he tells Reid stories about the great Rainbow and how she’s like magic in the ring. But in other stories, she wants to be a writer or a photographer or a scientist instead of a wrestler. He creates a basketball and some stars and a telescope until both sides are covered in pictures of the different things Reid could be.

“And, whatever Rainbow chose, her family stood behind her, proud to be her family.”

Reid slides closer and hugs him around the neck and he presses a kiss to her forehead. “I love you, Poppop.”

“Love you, too, kiddo.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to review! I love hearing your favorite parts!


	6. I’m a Superhero, Fuck You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Can I trust in my own heart_   
_Or am I just one part_   
_Of some big plan?_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2039  
Reid is 17

Reid looks up when Paige raps her knuckles against the door to her room. “So, have you decided yet, kid?” she asks.

Reid’s staring at her hands. She’s supposed to be picking out a gimmick for her first NXT house show, but she’s been sitting here for the past hour, completely stuck. Laid out in front of her are her mothers’ things: one of her mama’s gold boots, one of her mami’s armbands, her da’s goggles, and her ma’s glasses. These things have been a part of their own gimmicks, in one way or another.

Paige comes over to sit next to her. Charlotte and Becky are away at work, Bayley and Sasha overseas with the Amazons for their first European tour, and Reid didn’t want them in the house while she picks what she’s going to do. Paige might have left WWE to work at Charlotte’s gym with her, but she’s the only one Reid trusts to help her with this.

The older woman looks around the room and Reid watches her take everything in. She blushes at her room, feeling slightly embarrassed. It's still a light purple with little sunbursts of blue sponged on in a pretty pattern. There's posters, not of wrestlers because she gets enough of that in her life. But of musicians, both old and new. The old women's soccer team at their 2019 Championship. There's pictures of Charlotte's gym and pictures of Reid with friends and family- she blushes at the one of her Cassie kissing her cheek- but Paige just turns to her and smiles before gesturing at the objects on the blue and brown bedspread.

“This is impossible!” Reid throws her hands in the air. “How the hell am I supposed to do this?”

“Kid, you’ll get there eventually,” Paige says as she slings an arm over the teen’s shoulder. “You know, you’re not the only one to struggle. And it won’t be the last time.” 

“What do you mean?”

Paige chuckles. “Have you ever seen some of the outfits Becky wore?”

“Yeah, but wasn’t that her thing? Being quirky and funny until her feud with Mama?”

“Sure, but those outfits… Wow. The Lass Kicker and the Man were the ones that really stuck.”

“The mohawk always made me laugh as a kid.” Reid giggles. “And the jig. Ohmigod, the jig.” She covers her face in secondhand embarrassment. She's seen the videos. Found them with Cassie and Sampson while they were looking through the archives. The video of Becky's first entrance and the one of her and Charlotte having a jig-off.

“So, what’re you gonna do?” Paige asks as she picks up Bayley’s streamer armband, twisting the edges around her fingers.

“How did you pick your character?”

“Dark and emo. Lots of spikes and leather. I looked hot, so I went with it.” The black-haired woman shrugs. “Pick something you like and go from there.”

“Uh,” Reid’s brows furrow as she thinks, “I like superheroes?”

Paige chuckles. “There ya go.” She taps her streamer-tangled finger against Reid’s forehead. “Now just think about how you can make that work? Anything else?”

“I want to debut wearing my moms’ stuff.” She picks up Sasha’s glasses, puts them on. “Just for the first time.”

“Why?” Paige asks.

“Why what?”

“Why do you want to wear your moms’ things into your first match?”

Reid shrugs. “Do I need a reason?”

“You should think about why you want to wear them. Whoever interviews you after is going to ask questions.” Paige puts her hand on Reid’s forearm. “Because people might see those things and forever tie you to the Four Horsewomen. Charlotte was always dogged by her father’s legacy and people loved and hated her for that. She didn't mind because she was proud to be Ric's daughter, but WWE used that against her at times. I even had to say some scripted shit I'll always regret. Are you willing to do the same?”

Reid turns to look up at the older woman. Paige is the only other person that knows she’s going to debut. She found Becky and Reid training super early one morning, before the actual NXT wrestlers came in for their morning workouts. The mother-daughter team swore her to secrecy and Paige just wanted to help. She's been helpful as another opponent, another body in the ring when Cassie and Reid's Da are working with others. Another trainer when Da's busy and keeps her in check when she's not at Mama's gym. Paige also brings a different angle, a different edge, than Becky does, so it adds another layer to training. So Reid watches her and listens to what she has to say, but she's as stubborn as her moms and she wants to wear their gear out. 

“I want to remember where I came from. I’m a legacy and I’m damn proud of it.” Reid shrugs. “I want people to know that too.”

“And they will, kid,” Paige reassures her. “Now, what about colors?”

“Blue, gold, and red.”

“Captain Marvel, huh?”

Reid nods, her eyes flashing with excitement. “I love her so much. She’s so strong. She rose above so much adversity and hatred and misogyny. I want to do that too. I want to wear an outfit that looks like her suit. I also love Brie Larson, so that helps.” Reid stands and walks over to her dresser. She pulls out a notebook, flips through it, and hands it to Paige. “Delilah said she’d help with the costume when she’s not busy with her thesis, but we came up with a symbol together. I don’t want a tagline like my parents, even though it'll probably end up being The Legacy. I just want everyone to see this symbol and think of me.”

Paige squints. “What is it?”

“It’s the star that’s on her suit inside a fire patch.” She’s bouncing on her toes now, shifting from foot to foot. “I can’t wait for everyone to see it. Of course, Da’s gonna see it first because we gotta practice. And Cassie’s obviously gonna see it for the same reason.”

“Well, kid, some people have themed costumes from time to time, but you do you really want to be a superhero until you change your gimmick?”

“I want to. I’m going to stand above the crowd like one. I’m a second-generation legacy and stronger because of it. Like Captain Marvel was after she learned of her past, learned what happened to her.”

“Well, if that’s what you want, kid.”

Reid jumps onto the bed next to Paige, making her bounce a little. She chuckles. “I’m going to be a legacy wrestler. Might as well lean into it.”

“You might be a legacy, but you’re gonna break even more barriers. And you’re going to do it because you’re you. Not because of your parents.”


	7. Ma’am, That’s My Emotional Support Watch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Even those who are gone_   
_Are with us as we go on_   
_Your journey has only begun_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2042  
Reid is 21

“Mama, I’m home!” Reid calls as she drops her gear bag by the door. Her eyebrows furrow when she doesn’t get a response. The blonde’s car is sitting in the driveway, as it usually is when she knows Reid is coming home. She always greets Reid with a huge hug and a plate of cookies, because her first day home always ends up being cheat day. But today, the house is strangely quiet.

“Mama?”

She makes her way up the stairs to the second floor. Reid pushes open first her own room, then knocks on her parents’ door, where there’s daylight creeping into the hallway from the small crack. She’d learned the hard way not to just enter whenever she wanted to. When she doesn’t get a response, she pushes open the door.

“Mama?”

“Oh.” Charlotte looks up with a sniffle. She wipes at her eyes, pushing up her black and tortoiseshell cat-eye glasses and gives Reid a watery smile. She looks beautiful, even in her late 50s, dressed in an old t-shirt covered in paint and leggings with her gym logo on them. “I didn’t hear you come in. Sorry.”

“Are you okay?” Reid steps into the room and shuts the door gently behind her. “Mama, what’s happening?” She sits down on the bed beside her mama, reaches out to brush some long blonde and silver hair from her eyes, watches the crows feet wrinkle when she squints. “What’s wrong?”

Reid’s stomach clenches. Bayley and Sasha are overseas with the Amazons and her girlfriend, Cassie. Maybe something happened to them? Becky’s at the PC with the newest NXT recruits but she'll be home tonight for Welcome Back Cheat Night. She would have called if something happened.

Charlotte holds out something for Reid to see. A familiar beautiful golden watch with a little diamond taking the place of each number. On the back, under her palm, she can feel the engraved _ RF _in cursive. “It was my father’s,” she says in a soft voice. She laughs, a watery chuckle, and curls Reid’s hand over it. “He gave it to me when I turned 21.” She wipes under her eyes to try to stop the tears. “I wouldn’t take it. I couldn’t.” She shrugs. “He gave it to me again when you were born, Little Dove. Told me to give it to you when you turned 21.”

“Mama, I can’t…” Reid trails off. It’s been almost 11 years since her Poppop died and she’s only recently turned 21. They had celebrated her birthday and Cassie’s win defending her Amazons title during a WrestleMania match. She remembers trying hard liquor for the first time and pretending that it burned on the way down. Charlotte gave Becky a withering stare when Reid wasn’t convincing enough. Da might have let her drink when they were touring the independent circuit, but only a few sips from her own drink and not all the time. They’d given her enough gifts, ones she happily accepted, but this precious one she couldn’t take. “Mama, maybe you should hold on to it? Give it to me if I ever have a kid.”

Charlotte shakes her head. “He made me promise, Little Dove, that when you turned 21, I’d give you this. He told me it brought him good luck in the ring. And he wanted that for you.”

Reid flips the watch, tracing her thumb over her Poppop’s initials. “How did he know?” she asks in a hushed tone. “I was ten when he died. Even _ I _ wasn’t sure I was going to follow your path, his path.”

“He didn’t. He never said anything about wrestling when he gave to me. It brought him luck in the ring, but he said it would bring you luck in anything you do.” Charlotte turns Reid to face her and cups her cheek in her palm, a small smile on her face, pressing their foreheads together in a familiar gesture of seeking and giving comfort. “Dad was great about that. He always told me to follow my dreams. Did you know that I wasn’t always going to be a wrestler? I graduated college with a degree in business relations.”

“I _ cannot _ see you in any kind of cubicle, Mama. Da might talk about you being hot in all those pantsuits, but sitting in an office all day really isn’t you.”

“But I never saw myself as a wrestler,” the older woman responds. “Not until Reid talked me into it. We were going to dominate the sport together. And when he," Charlotte swallows, "when he died, I kept going. I told my dad I was going to wrestle in my brother’s name.”

“But it became more than that, didn’t it?”

Charlotte nods and smiles. “It became about changing and evolving and progressing women’s wrestling. It became about friendship and family and love, through whatever.” Charlotte smiles and laughs when Reid’s nose wrinkles. Her parents are always telling her about how she’s like Ma in the way that she doesn’t like cheesy shit unless she’s in the mood or with her girlfriend. “My dad told me when I was little that I was going to change the world. Whatever I did.”

“He told me the same thing right before he died. I hope he’s right.” Reid presses the watch to her chest. “Do you think he’d be proud of me? Do you think he’s watching me?”

“I think he’s in the front row of all your matches, bragging to Becky’s dad about how awesome you are. He’ll always be with you.”

“I told him about my first match. When it happened. When I lost. Da took me to see his grave. And I think he heard me. He sent me a sign.”

“What happened?”

“A magpie landed on top of the stone. It just looked at me, Mama. I knew it was him. He’s been with me since the beginning of my journey and he’ll be with me forever.”


	8. We Run This Town

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Tears of pain, tears of joy_   
_One thing nothing can destroy_   
_Is our pride deep inside_   
_We are one_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WrestleMania 61  
2045  
Reid is 24

The air backstage feels electric, like every single person is just a hydrogen bomb waiting to explode. Reid remembers all the time she’s been back here as a child, as a spectator, as a friend. Now she’s here as a participant, as a player in the game. 

She wanders the hall towards gorilla and waves at the other wrestlers. Cassie’s in one corner, poking at Sampson and pulling at one of the straps on his costume. Helen Killer, black hair looking like the bottom’s been dipped in blood, stands next to Ruby Riott and Blair. The younger women have a match for the RAW belt and Ruby’s not only here to support her daughter, but also because she’s got one of her own.

“You ready?” Reid looks behind her to find Delilah smiling at her. She’s holding a big box that she sets on the table and smiles. “Devyn wanted me to pass this along to you.”

“My boots!” Reid beams as she rips open the box to find brown boots with small detachable rocket boosters attached to the heel. There are gold sparkles that make it shimmer when you tilt it the right way and even the laces up the front are gold as well, just like her mama’s boots. “God, they’re beautiful. You guys did a really good job on them.” She hugs them to her chest.

“Zephyr added the gold laces,” Delilah adds. “But we’ll see if they really work once you make your entrance. You can get the canisters off by unlatching them. Just make sure you don’t hit anything important. And don’t do the match with the canisters on. They fucking hurt.”

“If I fuck up, you can have my Switch3.”

Delilah just laughs and moves over to where Cassie and Sampson are playing with the makeup kit someone must have left out. Sampson’s got two sets of eyebrows now and the fashionista scowls. 

“Sammy, I did your makeup already,” she chastises him. Reid watches them as she sits down at one of the other tables. “Cassie, why’d you have to mess it up?”

Cassie shrugs, grabs something from the snack table, and comes to sit beside Reid. The brunette shucks her boots and puts on the new ones. They feel just like her old ring boots, but better at the same time. They look like supple leather, even though they’re not, and the fabric on the outside feels soft.

“Nice boots,” Cassie says as she points with what Reid realizes is an apple. The brunette just smiles.

The two of them watch as Jackie Jett, the current SmackDown women’s champion, and Ford, a brunette with tons of piercings and a nice butch haircut, discuss last minute moves. Liv Morgan passes by them and wishes the couple good luck in the ring. 

“Hey, babe, you ready to kick ass and take names?” Cassie asks. She slings an arm over the back of Reid’s, a huge smile on her face. “First WrestleMania main event and we’re here against the fiercest heel squad.”

“Sampson better not trip up.”

“He definitely will, babe.”

“Whatever,” Reid says as she runs her hand through the kinks of Cassie’s hair, pulling at one of the thicker blue strands before she moves to trace her finger down the older woman’s dark skin, over her arm to intertwine their fingers. “I can’t wait to see my moms’ faces. Mama’s probably gonna faint.”

“It’s gonna be a shot for the ages.”

* * *

The Riott Squad goes first, entering to a lyricless rock anthem. Sarah stirs up pretend dust as she kicks her legs back in a stretch, looking like a bull ready to charge. Ruby raises her arms to the crowd, pumping them up, and Liv’s acting cute as she bounces around, sticking her blue tongue out and shaking her pigtails, a twisted combination of blue, pink, blonde, and silver. It’s as if nothing’s changed, even if the three of them are in their early 50s now.

Sampson jumps up and down, shaking his hands out as he stands in front of the entrance, ready for their song to play. Cassie and Reid flank him. They’d decided on an actual song instead of just music, especially with how they wanted to play this up. Make it the best WrestleMania entrance ever. Even beating out all of Reid’s moms’ entrances. As dancers-- Reid loving the flow of interpretive, Cassie all different kinds but mostly hip hop, and Sampson with ballet-- they wanted to showcase those talents. So they’d taken the lyrics and made up a fun dance that leads to Reid using her new boots to do a cool trick.

“Hope this works,” Sampson says as he gestures to Reid’s shoes. “Are they charged and ready to go?”

“Devyn says they were from one of the new ones, so they should have about 15 to 20 minutes of energy, so I can do the second half with them.”

“Good.” Cassie nods. “Just don’t kick anyone’s head in and we’ll be good.”

“I’ll try.”

* * *

_ Do you feel like you feel too much? _

_ Out of reach ‘til you’re out of touch _

_ Float around like a speck of dust _

_ And nobody seems to know _

The lights flash as Sampson comes out first, dancing a little bit. He’s got his gold gladiator-style gear on with the sun on the back of his shirt. Cassie exits next and star balloons start to fall from the ceiling. They dance around together for a little, strutting their stuff. Reid watches them as they pass extra gear-- Cassie a pair of Starr gloves and Sampson a plastic crown-- to kids in the crowd and it makes her smile. She jumps up and down, shakes her own jitters out, and follows them into the light.

_ Everyone’s tryin’ to chase what’s cool _

_ But we know they don’t have a clue _

_ You got me and I got you _

_ And that’s all we need to know _

Reid enters the arena last, just as their team name, The Three Muskateers, flashes across the screen. Ruby, Liv, and Sasha are reacting as if they’re surprised that these _children_ are challenging them. They’re giving each other ‘are you serious’ looks and Sarah scoffs, rubbing invisible dirt off of her shoulder. Reid throws her arms over Sampson and Cassie and the three of them share a look.

“We’re here to beat you!” Sampon shouts.

“You can’t beat talent, little boy,” Ruby responds, Liv and Sarah laughing.

Cassie sets her arm around Reid’s waist, fingers warm against her covered skin, and smirks. “You might be veterans, but that also means your old. Worn out.”

The crowd boos, on the side of the veterans. Reid revels in the fact that they're the underdogs. She knows she and her friends have done better when the odds are stacked against them. Ruby, Liv, and Sarah have been working together for years, for decades even, while The Three Musketeers have only had about a year to get their moves and minds and bodies in sync. 

_ Ready, set, go _

_ Let all your colors out _

_ Don’t feel alone _

_ We’re bigger than the crowd _

_ And, yeah, we were born to stand out _

As a team, they continue to dance and show off, pillars of smoke and little sparks exploding from the side of the stage. The crowd is electric, reacting to the three of them, chanting their names. Reid can’t see beyond the ramp lights and mini explosions, but she knows her moms are out there, sitting with Sonya and Mandy and Hunter and Stephanie. Sampson said his sisters were coming in to watch the match too, cheer him on.

_ So if we lose our way _

_ We’re both in this together _

_ No matter what they say _

_ It’s me and you _

Reid remembers when Seth and Bayley told them about the proposed plan to make an intergender team, the first one, and how they’d been the three picked. Not for their legacies or anything else, but because of their merits as wrestlers. They trained for months, even before the official Road to WrestleMania started. Sampson picked their team name and Cassie picked their team colors and Reid was chosen as the unofficial leader. She’d been the one to propose this specific entrance, had worked with Devyn, Paige’s daughter and tech wizard, and Delilah, Seth and Roman’s fashion expert daughter, for the modified boots that were about to light up the stage.

Reid remembers all the bruises from test runs. Hearing Cassie laugh and Sampson do the same until he rolled off the side of the ring. Every time she smashed into walls with the faulty tech or hit the ceiling. She lied to her moms and told them it was from training… or bruises from Cassie, if she wanted to fuck with them.

_ Writing our story _

_ Fighting for glory _

_ Ain’t goin’ down _

_ No, we never retreat _

_ Tell all the haters _

_ We got the players _

Cassie and Sampson took their places in front of Reid, hiding her from the crowd, like bodyguards. She hits the ground with the edge of her heel and, over the roar of the audience, she hears the hiss of the canister seals breaking open. The heat against the back of her boots lets her know that everything’s working.

Reid beams down at her shoes. She and Devyn came up with the idea one night when they were chilling in Devyn and Zephyr’s apartment. They’d had Captain Marvel on, the first movie, when the older woman proposed she could make shoes that did what Captain Marvel could do. She couldn’t wait to be just like her hero, the woman she based her costume on. This was her chance to prove to herself and the world that she could soar above her moms’ legacies.

_ Better start running _

_ ‘Cause we run the TEAM _

As soon as the words ‘running’ echoes, Reid backs up, takes a deep breath, and breaks through the shield that is her friend and girlfriend, race down the ramp and kicks off. Her feet take that final step when the singer shouts "TEAM."

‘Yeet!’ she thinks as she closes her eyes. Cassie’s laughter is the last thing she hears before the wind whips past her face. She opens her eyes the minute her feet leave the ground before she stretches out. 

The crowd explodes into roars and cheers and whoops and hollers and other sounds of awe. Reid opens her eyes and comes to float in front of a section, her shoes helping her hover in the air. They look small and she can hardly see through the bright ring lights. The canisters and tech are from those new hoverboards and hover shoes, so the mechanics are the same. Devyn and Delilah must be ecstatic because their shoes work. Add to that the full wrestling outfit Deilah made that lights up and shimmers in the lights the closer she gets to them, her outfit gives off the same effect as the one Brie Larson wears in the movies.

The music continues to play as she makes a few circles, hi-fiving people that raise their hands. She drops a replica of her signature Rainbow Ray-Bans into a little kid’s hands. She comes to a stop, hovering over the ring as the three heel women stare at her in awe. Cassie and Sampson enter the ring on different sides, climbing up until they’re standing on top of the turnbuckles. She flies over and high-fives them. 

Ruby grabs the mic from one of the refs and snarls into it about parlor tricks and dumb kids and everything she can think of. Reid lets her talk for a minute before she lands, feet touching the mat without a single sound. She kicks at the canisters with her heel, first one then the other, and they snap off easily.

“If you’re just gonna stand there and talk, I think we already won,” she snarls in Ruby’s face. Sampson jumps down and comes to stand next to her, Cassie flanking her other side.

“We’re here to kick names and take ass!” Sampson shouts.

“Put your hair up and square up,” Cassie adds.

“You asked for it,” Sarah snarls.

And so the match begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you thought! I've had this idea in my head for a long time and I'm excited I could finally share it!
> 
> I left the match open for interpretation too. Did the Riott Squad win their farewell match or did The Three Muskateers win? It's up to you!
> 
> Song: Team by Tova


	9. Thunderbolts and Lightning (Very Very Frightening)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _We are one, you and I_   
_We are like the earth and sky_   
_One family under the sun_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2034  
Reid is 13

Cassie had invited Reid, as well as Sampson and Delilah, over to study. The FSA for Reid, PSATs for Cassie, and the SATs for both Delilah and Sampson. Delilah wanted to get into a good school for fashion, maybe even travel to Paris for a year, so she was stressing more than the rest of them. Sampson didn’t really care seeing as he planned to take classes online while he was training to join his sisters in the wrestling ring. Cassie and Reid both planned to go to college in-state so they could train at the PC and join NXT as well. 

During their break, Mandy made a delicious spread for them to gorge themselves on before going back to their studies. Brain food, Sonya called it as she scarfed down a few donuts from that place down the road. Reid remembers Cassie saying something about the fact that her parents chose this place because it was next to a donut shop with a rating of 9 on Damandyz' Donuts yum scale. After dinner, studying resumed until Sampson and Delilah, sitting on the couch, slouched into each other.

Cassie and Reid tried not to giggle as Sampson eventually curled into Delilah’s body, the dark-haired girl putting her arm around the boy’s waist.

“They’re gonna get married someday,” Reid leans over and whispers.

Cassie snorts and scoffs. “Yeah, okay.”

* * *

The air blowing lazily through the window feels heavy. The Florida humidity and heat bears down on the city like someone pressing down on her ribcage. The other girl decided to sleep in the guest bedroom, leaving the lovebirds on the couch. Reid ties up her hair and slides under the thin summer covers. The fan hums in the opposite corner, circulating the air but not cooling it. The brunette curls into a bed that smells like Cassie, a comforting scent, and drift off into sleep.

Reid shoots up in bed when lightning flashes behind her eyelids and thunder crashes in the distance like cymbals. She’s always hated thunderstorms, ever since she was little, and they were numerous in Florida. Especially now when there's the transition between spring and summer. Except Reid knows she’s a big girl, so she can’t go running to her moms now, won’t call them to come pick her up just so she can be wrapped in their arms. She’s been trying to show them she’s more mature, can handle things by herself. She’s in eighth grade now, almost in high school. Her moms are all tough as nails and she wants to be just like them.

No fear. 

She jumps again as the thunder gets louder, the clouds fat with energized atoms and rain. Reid feels tears at the corner of her eyes and she wipes them away, pinching at the bridge of her nose to help. She won’t give in… she won’t.

She pulls her knees to her chest and whimpers as she closes her eyes, trying to block out the noise. There’s a flash of lightning illuminates the dark room and there’s a shadow standing in the doorway. She screams and thunder crashes, making her jump. Reid hides her face in her knees.

“Are you okay?”

Reid looks up to see Cassie standing in the doorway, the turned on hallway light warm spinning into the room to break through the darkness. Reid watches as she walks into the room, a frown on her face. Unfortunately, lightning flashes and Reid whimpers again. She curses her fear. She’s always hated crying in front of others, except maybe her moms, but in front of Cassie, it just made her stomach turn. 

“Cassie?”

The other girl sits on the bed and reaches out to brush her thumb over Reid’s cheek and the girl realizes she’s shed tears. Cassie wipes her tears away and pulls Reid into her arms. Reid feels her face flush in embarrassment. She may have a tiny crush on the other girl and this is so not helping her look cool. “You’re okay, Reid.” Thunder rumbles and then crashes, booms, right over the house. Reid buries her face further into Cassie. “Hey, I know.”

Cassie gets up and leaves the room and Reid wants to scream at the other brunette for leaving her alone. But Cassie comes flying back in with the cover from the guest room around her shoulder, like some kind of Supergirl, and suddenly they’re both under the extra blanket. Reid wants to tease her, but the dusk skinned girl is suddenly pressing in all around Reid: her smell, her touch, her breath near your ear. It might be hot under the covers, but she doesn’t care when Cassie snuggles closer to her, smelling like jasmine and citrus and vanilla donuts. 

“Let’s play a game.”

And, oh the thoughts Reid gets in her head when Cassie says that. Reid shudders as the older brunette’s breath washes over her ear and down her neck, Cassie’s body heat suffocating yet comforting at the same time. Cassie’s brown eyes sparkle in the lighting from the window. “Okay, so, pretend, we’re in Alaska.” 

Reid shoots Cassie a look, as if to say, ‘are you stupid?’ but the other girl just gives her this goofy smile and puts her arm around her, settling it on her waist. Cassie doesn’t say anything, just smiles. 

“Fine,” Reid huffs and leans against Cassie’s shoulder.

“Okay, so as I said, imagine we’re in Alaska. Remember, we’ve been there? Thick snow in the winter and bright sunlight in the summer.” Lighting flashes just beyond the covers. It sounds like they’re underwater, like waves crashing against the shore. “And we’re looking for gold.” Cassie pulls her stuffed lion, the ratty one she’s had since she was born and takes with her wherever she goes-- the one thing she isn’t embarrassed about-- up and wiggles it in front of her face. “Look, I found some.” Reid can’t help but shake her head against Cassie’s shoulder, but she smiles nonetheless.

Thunder crashes, sets off a whimper that spills from Reid’s lips. She buries her face in Cassie’s shoulder, feeling the heat from her body like sitting next to a furnace. Cassie’s only wearing a pair of thin sweatpants and one of Sonya’s ratty old tank tops with her logo on it. Her pants brush against Reid’s bare legs because the basketball shorts the older girl lent her don’t really go very far down her legs even though Cassie, even at fourteen, is so goddamn tall. Da teases Reid sometimes that she inherited Ma’s height issues, which earned her a smack on the back of the head.

“Okay, Reid, close your eyes.” Reid shakes your head, keeping them wide open. Lightning flashes. “Wow! Look, it’s the aurora borealis!”

“Are you kidding me?” Reid snarl. “I’m not gonna close my eyes, Cass. Then I can’t see the lightning to know when the thunder is coming.”

Cassie rolls her eyes. “Reid, just,” she takes a breath, “just, trust me.”

Reid smiles at her and snuggles closer, resting her head on Cassie’s forearm. Cassie chuckles and presses a kiss to her forehead. “A thunderstorm is rolling through town and you’re scared of it, so I’ll protect you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been so long. I know that most of this fic is about Reid and her family, but I needed a chapter where we get to see Cassie and Reid. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy the short chapter. Next time, we're in the future with Cassie and Reid. It will be the last chapter as well.
> 
> HAPPY BIRTHDAY, QUEENIE!


	10. Going to the Chapel (And We Gonna Get Married)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _All the wisdom to lead_   
_All the courage that you need_   
_You will find when you see_   
_We are one_   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2048  
Reid is 27

Reid giggles as the sand tickles her toes.They had decided on a barefoot wedding on a beautiful beach in Provincetown on Cape Cod. The perfect weather and the perfect guests. But, most important, the perfect woman coming down the aisle.

She tries to stand still, she really does. But she’s got about as much impulse control as her Da when it comes to puns, or her Mama when it comes to reacting to her Da making puns. But she can’t help it. Cassie’s wearing a white dress, one of the perfect beach ones that flows down her body like a waterfall, her feet bare and her hair twisted into its natural curls, beach waves that blow in the slight breeze.

Neither Reid nor Cassie wanted to spend a ton of money on their outfits, so Reid had gone to Delilah to tailor her suit and Cassie went to retail stores to find a beautiful dress that fit her perfectly yet wasn’t expensive. Reid might like her own look, but Cassie blows everyone else out of the water.

Reid takes a few steps towards Cassie before Sampson, her Maid of Honor, grabs her arm and pulls her back until she’s standing in the proper place.

“Not yet,” he hisses.

Reid squirms as Sonya and Mandy stop just in front of her. Since they got engaged, and even before, this is the longest they’ve been apart. That’s probably not true, but it feels like forever. If Reid doesn’t touch Cassie now, especially looking like she does, she’s going to die. 

Sonya smiles at her and Mandy wipes her eyes as they pass Cassie to her. Her soon-to-be-wife is smirking at her, like she knows _ exactly _ what Reid’s thinking. As soon as Cassie reaches her, Reid’s hands reach for her, clasping them in her own.

Tears fill Reid’s eyes and it’s hard to focus on what Hunter is saying because she can’t look away from Cassie. God, the way the breeze coming off the ocean blows Cassie’s curls gently around her face, covering her smile for a moment before revealing it.

She can’t believe, after all these years, she’s going to be marrying her soulmate, her true love, her everything.

* * *

“I now invite the newlyweds to the dance floor to share their first dance,” Devyn, their MC for the night, says after the meal is complete. They had delicious food catered from a restaurant right in town, a beautiful little place on the main road.

_ Take my hand, I'll teach you to dance _

_ I'll spin you around, won't let you fall down _

_ Would you let me lead? _

_ You can step on my feet _

_ Give it a try, it'll be alright _

Reid holds out her hand and pulls Cassie up and into her arms. Her mocha skin feels butter-soft under Reid’s fingers and Ried wraps Cassie’s arms around her neck. 

“Have I told you, you look beautiful?” Reid asks, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Only about a million times.” Cassie tangles her fingers in the baby hairs at the back of her new wife’s neck, knocking a few longer strands out of the tightly put-together bun. Reid hums as she rests their foreheads together.

_ The room's hush hush and now's our moment _

_ Take it in, feel it all and hold it _

_ Eyes on you, eyes on me _

_ We're doing this right _

“I can’t believe our little girl is married!” Becky cries, wiping at her eyes with her napkin. She smudges mascara all across the pristine white cloth. “My wee lass is all grown up.”

Charlotte nods and sniffles, dabbing at her eyes more delicately than her wife. “I’m so happy she and Cassie finally tied the knot.”

Sonya scoffs and leans over, breath smelling like wine, and snorts. “Reid really managed to nail a good one didn’t she?” she asks, her voice slightly shurred.

“No,” Sasha argues as she waves her beer at Sonya. Some of it dots the tablecloth and Mandy yelps as some hits her arm.

“Watch it!”

“Sorry, but you guys are wrong,” Sasha coninutes, brushing some brown hair from her eyes. Bayley’s braided some of Sasha's graying strands and the other brunette tugs on them, giggling, her eyes glassy with drink. She strokes her finger down Sasha’s chin and follows where her hand holds Charlotte’s. “Cassie definitely got the better deal.”

Charlotte laughs. “Why are we arguing about this?” She points to where Cassie and Reid whisper to each other. It looks like their feet barely touch the ground as they dance around the edge of the beach. Charlotte feels Becky rest her head on her shoulder. Becky might be older, they all are, but out of all of them, the Irishwman can still hold her liquor well.

“They gonna be so great,” Becky slurs, pressing her nose into Charlotte’s collarbone. “An’ they gonna have fun tonight.”

Bayley pushes at her until she faceplants into Charlotte’s lap with a giggle.

_ 'Cause lovers dance when they're feeling in love _

_ Spotlight's shining, it's all about us _

_ It's all about us _

_ And every heart in the room will melt _

_ This is a feeling I've never felt but _

_ It's all about us _

“Our parents are really drunk,” Cassie says as she looks over Reid’s shoulder. She can see them laughing and smiling and giggling. Mami and Da have passed out, the former resting her head on the table and the latter’s head in Charlotte’s lap. 

“Not surprised. Remember the night we told them we were getting married?”

“Oh, yeah. That was nuts.”

“Come on.” The song ends, bleeding into the next one as Devyn queues up the next few tracks. Her own wife, Zephyr, pulls her onto the dance floor as a new pop song plays. Reid takes both of Cassie’s hands and walks backwards as she leads her girl… no, wife… over to where the waves begin to lap at the beach.

Cassie squeals at the chill as Reid pulls her into the water, not caring about her suit or Cassie’s dress. They’re not fancy enough that they have to be dry cleaned or completely ruined by the salt water.

“Reiiiiiid!”

“Caaaaassie!”

The two of them laugh as Cassie kicks the water in Reid’s direction.

“WATER FIGHT!”

Reid and Cassie jump as Becky, in a pretty emerald green suit top and shorts, races into the water until she’s in up to her hips. Sasha and Sonya follow, screaming as they hit the chill of the Atlantic, even in the height of summer. Bayley sways where she, Charlotte, and Mandy stand at the edge of the shore.

“Charlie, come on in!” Becky splashes over and Charlotte’s pulled into the water. Mandy holds Bayley steady as Charlotte laughs her familiar barking laugh that only comes out whenever Becky does something.

Reid stands there as her family begins to play in the sand. Cassie comes up to stand next to her, wrapping an arm around her waist. She rests her head against Cassie’s sun-warmed shoulder as they watch their drunk parents frolicking in the ocean.

“Best wedding ever,” Reid whispers.

“Oh, babe, we haven’t even gotten back to the hotel.”

Reid reaches up to wipe away drool from her lips. “Please don’t tempt me.”

“I’m your wife...” Cassie purrs. “I should always be able to tempt you.”

Reid leans forward to plant a tempting kiss on her wife’s lip and, as Cassie leans forward into her body, the brunette pulls away. Cassie pinwheels for a moment before she plops into the shallows.

“Falling at yer knees already?” Becky asks as she comes to stand in front of the couple. She’s got a huge smirk on her face as she holds out her hand for her daughter-in-law.

Cassie stands up, her dress sheer from the water, and glares at Reid, who just pouts adorably. Becky slings her arm over Cassie’s shoulder as they watch Reid run back into the shallows to splash at Sasha and Sonya.

“Welcome to our crazy family, Cass,” Charlotte says as she comes to stand on her other side. Becky nods. “Well, at least officially.”

Reid comes to stand next to them, completely soaked, her jacket lost to the waves, beaming. She plants a kiss on Cassie until the other woman moans. Becky snorts from next to her. 

God, their big family just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Reid can’t wait for it to grow even more.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you like this ficlet story of Reid's life at different ages and stages.
> 
> Please don't forget to review. Let me know what you thought! There's plenty more to come!


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